Daw Suu and Time Magazine

Suu Kyi among 100 Most Influential People
: Time magazine

By LALIT K JHA

Friday, May 2, 2008

The Burmese pro-democracy icon, Aung San Suu Kyi, has been listed by Time magazine as among the 100 most influential people of the world for the year 2008.

Aung San Suu Kyi, who has spent nearly 12 years under house arrest, was among a group of people including the Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama; former Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim; Chinese President Hu Jintao; Russian President Vladimir Putin; and India leader Sonia Gandhi in the magazine's list of 100 most influential people of the world.

Aung San Suu Kyi, nonviolent activist and winner of the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize, reads in her yard where she was under house arrest. (Photo: Steve McCurry/Magnum Photos)

The US President, George W Bush, made a comeback to the list and the three US presidential candidates, Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and John McCain are included on the list, which does not include Osama bin Laden, the most wanted terrorist in the world; the Iranian President, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad; and the UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon.

Writing about Aung San Suu Kyi in the special issue, Oscar-winning actress Anjelica Houston described her as "today's Mandela."

"Suu Kyi, 62, has been a courageous advocate for human rights and democracy, and she is the world's only imprisoned Nobel Peace Prize recipient," wrote Houston, who has also been involved with the US Campaign for Burma.

Terming the current regime as extremely brutal, Houston said: "It took decades for us to come to Mandela's aid. Suu Kyi—and the people of Burma—are waiting to be freed now."